Coach Dan's Blog

  Good morning! As you're setting your goals for the day, why not include something quick and easy that may just help you improve your leadership and communication skills. Almost all of us interact with others throughout our day, and each of those interactions is an opportunity to reflect, gain insights and learn. What if... at the end of each meeting or call today, you paused for 60 seconds and reflected about that interaction? (Any of the following questions would work, or create your own!) ❔ After we concluded, what impression about me did they walk away with? ❔ On a scale of 1-10, how clear was I with communicating my intentions? ❔ What new thing did I learn about that person just now? ❔ What new thing did that person learn about me just now? ❔ What one thing might I do differently in my next interaction? Taking a brief pause and reflecting in the moment can be a powerful way to identify opportunities for improvement throughout your day. Commit to pausing and reflecting for ...

Happy Monday. As you set your goals for the upcoming week, why not challenge yourself to try one small thing? Leaders who ask questions instead of giving instructions create an enviornment where team members feel empowered and passonate about solving problems. 💡 "What are your ideas about how to solve this?" 💡"If you were me, how would you address this?" 💡"If you could solve this problem right now, what would you do?" Give your team members the space to be creative, and the support to implement their own solutions - and they will thrive! What's stopping you from making a small change today? We all win together.  

  I was recently asked by someone I met, "Isn't a coach really just a trainer?" My response was quick - "While a coach sometimes trains on new skills or knowledge, they also facilitate, mentor and challenge teams to improve the way they work." Looking back, I would grade myself a "C-" on that answer. I WISH I had said... "A great coach works with you to achieve your goals. They bring experiences, perspectives and tools to help you and your team accelerate performance. It's not always about faster... but it IS about better! A great coach helps you and the team identify ways to improve and then challenges you address them WHILE working to achieve the teams goals. They know that there are many different ways to make improvements, and have a "toolbox" of processes, frameworks and techniques to help identify and make them. That said, they don't just want to teach you a skill (or framework, or process) - they want you to use your skill...

  For anyone who needs to hear it today - “To be yourself in a world that is constantly trying to make you something else is the greatest accomplishment.” ― Ralph Waldo Emerson Emerson is on to something. Is it possible to spend so much time trying to meet the expectations of others that you forget the value you bring as a unique human being? Are we so busy pleasing others, that we miss the chance to contribute our own uniqueness to a problem or an opportunity? How many incredible innovations have we missed out over time because of the phrase, "The boss wants it done this way...?" YOU are amazing. YOU are unique. YOU are valuable ideas and perspectives. BE who you are and give your best. That is the greatest accomplishment.

The key to unlocking your team's full potential? Balancing the 3 Es - Effectiveness, Efficiency, and Engagement. While many organizations focus solely on efficiency, measuring and optimizing for results, this approach can lead to limited long-term value. By inspecting and balancing the 3 Es, leaders can enable cross-functional teams to achieve their full potential indefinitely. Don't limit your team's success - prioritize effectiveness and engagement alongside efficiency.

​

One of the most important contributions that leaders can make in any transformation is to model the types of behaviors that we want teams and team members to adopt!  Modeling our target behaviors sends a very clear message that we are invested in not only changing the way we approach work, but also the culture that enables and reinforces those target behaviors.  Making small but thoughtful changes in the way you present yourself to your teams and partners can go a long way in creating the kind of organization we need.  As you’re working with your teams and partners, consider incorporating just one small thing from the following ideas. Pro tip – Don't have time to read this whole document right now?  Check out the “tl;dr” (Typed Long; Didn’t Read) section at the bottom of this post for an executive summary. Emphasize outcomes and put a premium on achieving business results rather than focusing on output.  Agile minded leaders view results in terms of achieving b...

​

If y'all have been paying attention, I often refer to our transformations, or any change really, as a journey. I like that word because it involves the idea of something that takes time and is full of possibilities. Something that could be exciting and full of adventure. It's a little bit mysterious because of the distance and time involved. Anyone who has traveled much at all knows that, even with the most perfectly charted course, the unexpected can, and often does, happen. You can let it derail you, or you can embrace the challenge and take what you can from the experience. The word "journey" to me says there are things to learn and see and experience along the way, and those things along the way can be just as exciting and valuable as reaching the destination! On any journey, there will be forks in the road, and we have to decide which direction we're going to go. Today, I'm sharing with you all that I've decided on a path that takes me away from...